Posted by Rick Denney on December 04, 2001 at 14:50:18:
In Reply to: No Perfect Mouthpiece? What Do You Use? posted by Steve W on December 04, 2001 at 10:45:40:
Each of my tubas seems to have a mouthpiece that provides the best compromise between sound, intonation, and playability. For the Miraphone 186, it is a PT-48, which will peel paint when needed. When I want less wattage, I use a Miraphone Rose Orchestra.
For the York Master, I'm using a Doug Elliott 132-2N (I think that's it) rim, a T cup, and a 6 shank with a custom taper. It took a lot of fiddling. The Conn Helleberg also works pretty good on this tuba, now that the receiver's taper has been fixed and it fits properly.
My Yamaha 621 F tuba will work fine with a Conn Helleberg, except for a few intonation quirks. It's right on the dot with a Warburton custom that has an X30 cup and a medium backbore. Call it a Helleburgish cup with a very slightly smaller backbore. Shallow mouthpieces on this tuba sound bright and edgy with me playing them, even though it is a small F tuba, and the deep funnel shape gives it a sound that blends a little better with other tubas (I bought it for playing in a quartet).
Rick "who thinks rims should fit your face, back-bores should fit your tuba, and cups should fit the sound in your head" Denney